Far too much of the media footage and photographs coming out of Baltimore during the Freddie Gray protests depicted a rage-filled, violent scene. But those images weren’t entirely representative of the city’s story; it’s just the one the news agency were pushing. Prince has chosen to highlight the more peaceful aspects of the outcry in his new lyric video for “Baltimore”.
The protest song, which features Eryn Allen Kane, was released back in May ahead of the Purple Peace Proponent’s appearance at the Rally 4 Peace concert. In the accompanying clip, director Ralston Smith pieces together images of peaceful marches; signs calling for social justice; and the Baltimore area CVS store infamously damaged during the hotter moments of protest, its windows boarded up and spray painted with signs of love over money. It all ends with a quote from Prince himself: “The system is broken. It’s going to take the young people to fix it this time. We need new ideas, new life…”
Watch:
